Safety barriers are utilized for many purposes. For instance, in the construction industry, a safety barrier or display sign with a support stand is commonly used to cordon off a restricted area or warn of potentially dangerous conditions. Support stands used with such devices may be collapsible. A collapsible stand may be used, for example, to support a barrier structure, ribbons or flags around a construction site, to support a safety sign used around roadside or highway construction areas, or for other purposes where portability is needed to move the barrier or sign or to pack it up and relocate it to another construction site or the like. Of course, portable barriers or signs with collapsible support structures may be used for many other purposes as well, such as, for example, to visibly mark off queued areas inside a movie theatre, display store advertisements indoors or outdoors, etc.
Collapsible prior art barriers often require complicated spring-loaded foldable and/or multiple articulating mechanisms to achieve portability. Many such complex devices require certain specially designed support stand parts which do not foster overall interchangeability and simplicity. Replacing damaged components of such structures can in some cases require substantial time due to the numerous interlocking and/or bolted assemblies that must be disassembled and reassembled to repair the device. It also may be difficult—and over time, impossible—to readily find replacement parts for specially designed component parts of such structures—thus effectively rendering the entire device un-useable.
Stability is another essential feature of a support stand structure used with a barrier or a sign. Stability is especially critical when positioning a safety barrier or sign indoors or in an outdoor environment (e.g., in windy or rainy conditions, etc.)—near road traffic or pedestrians passing by. A support stand needs stabilizing structures to help minimize the possibility of the mounted barrier or sign being blown over into oncoming traffic or knocked over and injuring passing pedestrians. Stand leveler structures are generally needed to help keep the barrier or sign oriented properly when used to block-off, barricade, or warn drivers or pedestrians of dangerous areas around highway or building construction sites.
Moreover, generally, typical collapsible support stands are a functional component of a safety barrier or a sign—rather than being integrally compactable in combination with both a safety barrier and also a display sign. That is, various portable devices are constructed as either a combination of a safety barrier and collapsible support stand or—alternatively—a combination of a display sign and collapsible support stand—but not the combination of all three of these structures.
Prior art collapsible stand devices lack structures adapted to enhance stability when used on certain sloped or irregularly contoured ground or road surfaces and the barrier/sign and support stand structural configuration that fosters compactibility. Moreover, prior art structures use specialized parts that create repair and replacement problems.
Prior art patents which disclose attempts to solve the above problems are set forth as follows:
U.S. Pat. No. 5,318,258 to Lang, entitled “Portable Highway Sign Stand,” is directed to a portable collapsible highway sign stand for standard rollup and rigid warning, regulatory and informational signs. This device has an elongated vertical rigid sign-supporting mast which is supported by a multi-legged base. The legs are pivotally supported for movement from a first folded position parallel to the mast to a second position in which the legs are splayed outwardly and secured in place by a single central retainer pin. A sign mounting jaw including a first fixed outer jaw and a slidable inner jaw member is secured to the top of the mast. A mast tilt adjuster is incorporated to adapt use of the sign stand to non-level terrain.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,888,894 to Brown, Jr., entitled “Stand for Safety Sign or the Like,” sets forth a sign stand for supporting highway safety signs or the like. The stand includes a plurality of folding legs which support the stand on the ground. The legs support a socket having an open upper end to receive the mounting bracket formed at one corner of a side. A latch mechanism includes a hook normally extending within the socket, and cammed to one side as the mounting bracket enters the socket. The lever extends laterally from a side of the socket, enabling withdrawal of the hook to remove the sign.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,336,623 B1 to McCarthy, entitled “Portable Safety Barrier,” sets forth an example of device with multiple upright adjacent posts spaced apart which are each pivotably mounted on a first base plate affixed along an edge of a precipice. The posts have bores through opposed sides and L-shaped brackets mounted on at least one side surface. A triangular brace has a second base plate spaced inwardly from the post. Two arms converging inwardly distal from the second base plate connect ends of the second base plate to the post. The arms pivot with respect to the second base plate. Ropes are threaded through the bores or 2×4's are mounted on the L-brackets or mesh is hung on the L-brackets to create a barrier between the spaced apart posts.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,441,267 to Alder, entitled “Portable Golf Target Stand,” sets forth an example of a portable golf target stand having a base member, with the base member including pivotally mounted legs, with the legs arranged in a canted orientation relative to a top wall of the base member, such as the legs are arranged for inter-folding configuration to orient the leg members in a substantially parallel relationship when thusly inter-folded, with a signal rod arranged for selective reception within the base member, and the signal rod arranged for a break-down configuration for ease of storage of the signal rod when separated from the base member.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,829,178 to Hillstrom, entitled “Portable Collapsible Sign and Stand,” is directed to a collapsible sign member which is attached to a collapsible base member. The two members can be disassembled and folded-up into a compact package for storage and transport. Horizontal cross-brace members for the sign member are connected to a central bracket member which is releasably attached to a vertical upright member in the base member. Another cross-brace member is slidably received in the vertical upright member. A sign panel is connected to the ends of horizontal and vertical cross-brace members and the vertical upright member in order to be fully displayed for viewing by passing motorists and pedestrians. A foldable flag mechanism is used to display a set of warning flags. The flag mechanism is pivotally attached to the vertical cross-brace member. The combination sign and sign stand assembly can be quickly and readily assembled to its display condition and, correspondingly, disassembled and folded-up to its storage and transport condition.
My earlier U.S. Pat. No. 5,961,248 is incorporated herein by reference.
Publications of devices related to barricades are shown at www.globalindustrial.com entitled “Portable Safety Barricade” (page 221); “Portable Barricade” (page 219); Indoor/Outdoor Pedestrian Control;” Protective Rail Barrier” (page 219); “Premium Control Barrier” (page 222); “High Visibility Barrier” (page 222); “Outdoor Hi-Visibility Barrier” (page 222); “Pedestrian Barrier” (page 220); and “Barrier Warning Tape” (page 220). Other publications are shown at www.grainger.com entitled “Delineator Post” (page 2788); “Plastic Safety Fence” (page 2788); Warning Barrier Fence”; and they are also shown in McMaster-Carr publication entitled “Traffic and Control Barriers and Tape” (page 1725).
There remains a need for a uniquely collapsible barrier and sign support stand combination configured for easy setup and breakdown—as well as being compact, in the collapsed position—without the need for numerous specially configured interconnecting, foldable subcomponents and without the need for numerous special components lacking simplicity and ready interchangeability and replaceability—and which is also adapted to help enhance stability on flat as well as irregularly contoured or sloped surfaces.
Those of skill in the art will appreciate the present invention which addresses the above needs and other significant needs the solution to which are discussed hereinafter.